The District of Wells is expected to gain some peace of mind this fall as flood mitigation efforts on Lowhee Creek near completion.
The project, which began in 2024, received an initial investment of $2.35 million from the Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness BC, and $5.3 million from the Union of BC Municipalities Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Readiness Fund.
Undertaken in partnership with the Lhtako Dene Nation, the project is being led by R. Radloff and Associates, an engineering firm based in Prince George.
Its primary goal is to protect South Wells from potential flooding and to manage the flow of water from the creek as it moves through North Wells.
South Wells spans about 50 hectares. Potential flooding could put roughly 128 residents, along with their homes and businesses, at risk.
Phases 1 and 2A of the project have been completed. Work on phases 2B and 2C is set to begin soon, with the goal of securing permits and finishing construction by October.
Additional phases are planned to support the creation of fish habitats in the creek.
Lowhee Creek poses a flood risk to the District of Wells due to a series of environmental impacts dating back to the 1800s.
Once a rich source of gold, the creek yielded roughly 3,000 ounces of gold in a single season. But extensive mining led to long-term environmental degradation that continues to affect the area.
“Over time, as the creek gets mined, it becomes less stable and less natural,” said Jerry Dombowsky, chief administrative officer for the District of Wells. “It’s now a completely unnatural watercourse. A channel was created for water to disperse and fan out into Jack of Clubs Lake, depositing tailings and mining debris from hydraulic mining. Over time, the channel has filled up, creating a flooding threat. What was once a 10- or 15-foot deep channel is now filled to the top.”
The project is designed to protect the community against a potential 1-in-500-year flood scenario. To date, the creek’s dike has been reinforced.
“The recent rains have raised no concern,” said Dombowsky. “A large portion has already been armoured with riprap. Flooding is always a concern, but at this point it would take an extreme rain event to cause major flooding. However, the project isn’t finished. We need to complete the final phase, and then the community will be 100 per cent protected — unless there’s a 501-year storm!”
District of Wells Mayor Ed Coleman, who also serves as project manager for the Lowhee Creek work, told The Citizen that there have been delays.
“On Jan. 1, they upgraded the flood protection from a 1-in-200-year flood management plan to a 1-in-500-year plan based on what has happened in the past two to four years in BC,” said Coleman. “This means higher berms, more rock and more engineering to handle that level of water. The biggest challenge, though, has been working through the many regulations. There are probably six to nine different regulatory bodies involved that all have to provide approvals.”
Coleman emphasized that support from the Lhtako Dene Nation has been crucial in securing permits and supplying materials for the project.
Dombowsky added that the work is not only about public safety, but also long-term environmental restoration.
“It’s a very historic creek,” he said. “All you have to do is Google it and you’ll see how rich it was in gold mined hydrologically. The problem is that the hydraulic mining of the 1860s wasn’t done to today’s environmental standards. It was very damaging to the creek and its fish habitat. What we’re trying to do now is not just protect the community from flooding, but also restore the creek over the long term to create a more environmentally sustainable watercourse.”
